Emily Lamparter backstops Mt. Sinai’s Class C lacrosse title

About 10 minutes before halftime, Emily Lamparter can be seen on the sidelines juggling. After that, the goalkeeper faces warmup shots from a teammate. Then again from her assistant coach.

Lamparter’s routine stays the same as her role has become more defined for the Mount Sinai girls lacrosse team. The freshman, who was only called up to varsity during the playoffs last season, starts the second half of nearly every game in the cage.

And she rarely disappoints.

Lamparter made four saves behind a stifling Mustangs defense on Thursday, leading top-seeded Mount Sinai to its fourth consecutive Suffolk Class C championship with an 8-6 win over third-seeded Westhampton.

“I’ve known her since she was coming through,” coach Al Bertolone said. “She’s been coming through for a long time. She’s a lefthanded kid. I have no hesitation to put her in. She’s going to step into the goal next year and she won’t leave until she graduates. She’s legit.”

Being limited to second-half work isn’t a knock on Lamperter, and it certainly isn’t a knock on Sienna Masullo, the starter. Masullo, a senior who will play at Pace, made two saves and helped Mount Sinai (17-1) enter halftime tied at 4 with Westhampton (11-7).

Sinai used an early surge in the second half to take control, as Meaghan Tyrrell (three goals), Morgan Mitchell (two), Emma Tyrrell (two) and Gabby Sartori each tallied a goal to put the Mustangs ahead 8-4.

SEE PHOTOSSuffolk Class C final: Mt. Sinai vs. Westhampton

With 15 minutes remaining, Mount Sinai began to stall with a four-goal lead. But a yellow card gave Westhampton a player-up advantage, and Giana Murphy buried a free position to cut the deficit to 8-5 with 9:11 remaining.

Isabelle Smith scored with just under three minutes remaining for Westhampton’s final tally, and Lamparter came up big with two saves in the final minutes.

“She had a bunch of key stops,” senior defender Meaghan Scutaro said. “They went on a roll, and she definitely stopped that. As a ninth grader, that’s insane.”

Scutaro spearheaded a defensive effort that limited the key players of Westhampton. Hollie Schleicher netted two goals, but no Hurricanes were able to take over. Scutaro said her twin sister, Kirsten, Kelly Johnston and Emma Tyrrell helped secure the defensive end in front of both goalkeepers. Lamparter agreed.

“I really owe it to my defense, especially when we were man down,” she said. “They were forcing shots that I could get pretty easily.”

Mount Sinai faces Nassau Class C champion Cold Spring Harbor on Sunday at noon at Islip for the Long Island championship and a berth to the state semifinal next weekend at SUNY Cortland.

No matter the stage, Lamperter will be there for her second-half reps.

Said Bertolone: “She’s very low maintenance, and she just makes saves. We just let her play.”